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This collection consists primarily of letters that Rohloff and Philip Hacker wrote to their parents and siblings while serving in the 2nd and 5th Michigan Infantry Regiments during the Civil War. Also included are two of Rohloff Hacker's diaries, letters by additional Michigan soldiers and a female aid worker, and letters that William Hacker received from his brother Karl in Neustrelitz, Germany, from 1877-1880.

This collection consists of letters that Rohloff and Philip Hacker wrote while serving in the 2nd and 5th Michigan Infantry Regiments during the Civil War. The collection also includes two of Rohloff Hacker's diaries, letters by additional Michigan soldiers and a female aid worker, and letters that William Hacker received from his brother Karl in Neustrelitz, Germany, from 1877-1880.

Among the most valuable letters in the collection are Rohloff's written during the summer of 1861. These provide an excellent sense of life in the camps defending Washington, going beyond descriptions of the routine of camp life to discussions of morale, officers, and the preparedness of soldiers on both sides. Rohloff describes the equipment and uniforms issued to his Regiment -- late and in poor condition -- in great detail, and their involvement in skirmishes and in the 1st Battle of Bull Run. He displayed an unusual zeal in soldiering, remarking that he did not hesitate in firing at Confederate soldiers, even the first time, and making a number of caustic remarks about Confederate soldiers. The amusing rivalry he and Philip carried on through their correspondence with home over their regiments and relations with friends and women decreased after the First Battle of Bull Run, and seems to have ended altogether after the Peninsular Campaign, when both their moods turned darker and more serious. The brothers both wrote informative letters during the Peninsular Campaign, particularly during the siege of Yorktown, the Battle of Williamsburg, and the Seven Days' Battles. The letters describing the Battle of Fredericksburg are also absorbing, particularly Philip's account of his own wounding. Somehow, through their experiences, which included a number of disastrous defeats at the hand of the enemy, both brothers unwaveringly maintained their faith in their country and their religion.

Rohloff and Philip wrote clearly and succinctly, and both were sensitive to the larger issues of the conflict and to the effect of war on the participants and civilians. Both commented occasionally on strategy and the leadership of the Union Army. Philip's letters are somewhat more polished than Rohloff's. The majority of the brothers' letters were written to family members, with most addressed to their father and mother, William and Barbara Woll Hacker, their younger siblings, Serena and Theodore, or their sister and brother-in-law Augusta and Alpheus Macomber in various combinations. Rohloff also wrote more than 30 letters to his former employers, E.F. Albright and C. Thomson, or Mrs. Albright.

The collection contains letters of several other Michigan soldiers, most of who served with the Hackers, or were friends of the Hacker family from Brighton. Among these are four letters from Peter Smith (Co. G, 2nd Michigan), reminiscing about his friendship with Rohloff and describing visits to his grave; five from Newton J. Kirk (Co. E, 26th Michigan Infantry); four from Capt. John C. Boughton (Co. G, 2nd Michigan), two letters of Edward R. Bliss (4th Michigan Infantry), and six letters written in February and March, 1863, by W. H. Pratt, a Sergeant in the hospital in which Philip Hacker was dying (probably William H. Pratt, Co. E, 26th Michigan Infantry). Another group of additional correspondence consists of 16 letters that Julia Susan Wheelock wrote about her work for the Michigan Soldiers' Relief Association in Washington, D.C., and northern Virginia between 1863 and 1866. Wheelock is also mentioned in several of the soldier's letters. In 1870, Wheelock published a memoir of her war-time experiences, The Boys in White; the Experience of a Hospital Agent in and around Washington.

The collection also contains a group of 5 letters that Karl Hacker wrote to William Hacker, his brother, from Neustrelitz, Germany, between September 16, 1877, and February 12, 1880. The letters are written in German schrift. Hacker's correspondence concerns local news and events, including several festivals; changes in Neustrelitz and Germany since William left for the United States; and his work as a construction supervisor. He provided updates about his health, and also discussed news of family members and friends in the United States and Germany.

The collection also contains The Congregational Psalmist: A Collection of Psalm Tunes, three soldier's bibles, two belonging Rohloff C. Hacker and one from Alexander Reuben that also has Philip W. Hacker's name in it, a leather wallet with Philip Hacker and William A. Ferguson's name on it, and a sewn cloth case. Miscellaneous items such as newspaper clippings, stamps, hunting licenses, currency, 4 photographs, and photographic negatives are also included. A small selection of 20th century family correspondence about the Hacker brothers supplement the collection.

The Hair documents, ephemera, and prints collection is comprised of 103 items, mostly printed materials related to hair, shaving, and wigs. Included are ephemeral advertisements, trade cards and price lists, government acts relating to hair and wigs, manuscript letters and indentures, caricatures and cartoons, broadsides, sheet music, other miscellaneous prints, and one braided lock of hair.

The Hair Documents, Ephemera, and Prints collection is comprised of 103 items, mostly printed materials related to hair, shaving, and wigs. Included are ephemeral advertisements, trade cards and price lists, government acts from British monarchs George II and George III relating to hair and wigs, manuscript letters and indentures, caricatures and cartoons, broadsides, sheet music, other miscellaneous prints, and one braided lock of hair. The material spans from 1717 to the late 1980s, with the bulk of materials dating from the late eighteenth century to the end of the nineteenth century. A majority of the materials are from England, although some are from Belgium, France, Switzerland, and Scotland. Many of the items are satirical and are commentary on fashion and the idea that the local barber was the "jack of all trades." Two similar items, a comical manuscript resume of "Isaac Morgan" and a fictitious advertisement for the varied services of "Isaac Factotum" offer exaggerated illustrations of how a barber did more than cut hair. Of interest is a series of mid-nineteenth century Valentines which center around the love-lives of barbers. Also included is a letter from Alex Campbell to his relative John Campbell, the Cashier of the Royal Bank of Scotland during the Jacobite rising of 1745. There is also sheet music from the composer (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), A Pastoral Song, better known as My Mother bids me bind my hair. Of note are prints by British satirists William Hogarth, Isaac and George Cruikshank, and Thomas Rowlandson.

The Hubble family scrapbooks consist of two volumes containing trade cards, clipped engravings, and other scrapbook materials compiled by members of the Hubble family of Monroe, Michigan.

The Hubble family scrapbooks consist of two volumes containing trade cards, clipped engravings, and other scrapbook materials compiled by members of the Hubble family of Monroe, Michigan.

Volume 1: The first volume (35 x 25.5 cm) was originally a copy of the 1876-77 Autumn and Winter edition of Mme. Demorest’s Illustrated Portfolio of the Fashions and has red cloth covers and gilt embossing work on the front and back. “Monroe Hubble” is inscribed on the volume’s first page, while “Willie Hubble” is written on the inside of the back cover; both inscriptions appear to be written in a child’s hand. Two engravings by Kimmel & Voigt made for Demorest’s Monthly Magazine appear towards the front and were part of the original volume. Subsequent pages also reveal numerous illustrations and descriptions of various articles of clothing listed in Demorest’s fashion catalog, though much of this has been obscured by scrapbook items that were pasted in. Compiled materials mainly include various trade cards and scrapbook decorations, but also include several engravings showing scenic and rural landscapes, women’s fashions, portraits, and performance artists (including Smith’s Swiss Bell Ringers). Of particular note are Uncle Tom’s Cabin-related illustrations and cartoons involving racial caricatures of an African American regiment called “The South 5th Rangers.”

Volume 2: The second volume (25 x 20 cm) has red paper covers with “Scrapbook” and decorative designs embossed in gold on the front. A photomechanical reproduction of a portrait of N. B. Hubble as an adult appears on the inside of the front cover. Subsequent materials mostly include trade cards and scrapbook decorations, several of which also appear in the first volume. Many of the trade cards were produced by the Calvert Lithograph Co. of Detroit. Items of note include Shakespeare-related cartoons; an ad for “Mme. Fontaine’s Bosom Beautifier” that incorporates a portrait of Oscar Wilde; a photographic portrait of a baby made to look like a stamp; and scrapbook cutouts including one of a black man (likely supposed to be a Haitian soldier) wearing one boot and components of a French Army uniform as well as one of two women embracing and kissing.

The James Forsyth papers contain letters, primarily from Forsyth's colleagues in the military during and after the Civil War. Items include an important series of letters between Forsyth and Philip H. Sheridan, in which they discuss their political and military opinions.

The James Forsyth papers (61 items) contain 47 letters and documents, primarily from Forsyth's colleagues in the military; 1 copy of a diary and 2 eye-witness accounts of military engagements; and 6 printed items and ephemera.

Eight letters relate to the Civil War, including an important series of items between Forsyth and Sheridan. Twenty-one items date from after the war (1866-1868) and provide information about Washington and military politics, including letters from Sheridan and George Armstrong Custer. Twelve letters were written while Forsyth accompanied Sheridan to Europe as an aide-de-camp, including a telegraph from Otto von Bismarck, which is a brief telegram in German to Sheridan.

The Diary and Personal Accounts series contains material from Europe including an incomplete eyewitness account of the Battle of Sedan (September 1, 1870); an incomplete account of the surrender of Napoleon III after the Battle of Sedan (recounting September 2, 1870, but written in 1881); and a 68-page diary of his observation of the Franco-Prussian War from German lines, including the Battle of Sedan in 1870.

The Printed items include a West Point Roll of the Cadets for the year 1846, lists of Fourth Class members in 1846 and 1852, and an Official Army Register for September 1861. Ephemera include an official bridge and ferry pass (1864), Forsyth's 1870 passport, and a complementary Union Pacific Railroad pass to board a special train bringing the Grand Duke Alexis of Russia and party from Omaha to McPherson Station in Nebraska, for a "Grand Buffalo Hunt," under direction of Lieutenant General P. H. Sheridan.

The Reed-Blackmer family papers consist of the correspondence from an extended family including many settlers in New York, Michigan, and Western America.

This collection consists of the correspondence of the Reed and Blackmer families spanning a period from the mid-19th century to shortly after World War I. The greatest strengths of this collection are the early letters pertaining to education in New York State, and the letters written from family members in the west to their New York State relations. Letters from Michigan in the 1850s, Kansas and Indian Territory in the 1880s and 90s, and the smattering from Illinois and Wisconsin, all give expression to the emigrants' specific experiences.

Many of the early letters are from students and young teachers in New York State, where there were many pockets of culture and education. Lucinda Green, a student at the academy in East Bloomfield, was taking intellectual philosophy in 1849. One of the lectures she described was delivered by photographer John Moran, who "exhibited some pictures with the magic lanterns some of which were very comical" (1850 January 26). Another correspondent, James Bigelow, detailed his professors, particularly the female ones, and activities at Alfred University in Allegany County. James Cole, a medical student, taught school in Ontario County, and Scott Hicks was a student at the Buffalo Medical College. Lizzie, Martha, and Marshall Reed attended the seminary and academy in Canandaigua, and Lizzie described such highlights as the infant drummer's concert: "he drummed beautifully, he was only three years old," and hearing a Jew preach: "His dialect was so different from ours that I could scarcely understand a word he said" (1851 [November] 7, 1852 November 21). Harriet Pennell's cousin Paul taught in Naples, and Harriet herself probably attended the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary in Lima, Livingston County.

Of all the letters from the west, the handful from Lynus Tyler to Dudley Reed are the most entertaining. Tyler was an enthusiastic, but less-than-eloquent correspondent from rural Macomb County, where he had a 200 acre farm. He tried to entice Reed to migrate with descriptions of the abundance of women and deer: "Mary Bennet is not married yet but she wants to bea dud come and get her for you cannot doo enny better her post adress is Romeo Macomb Co. Mich" (1851 June 22). He assured Dud he would "keep the girls from a hurting you" when he came out (1851 February 9). After Dudley married "Miss Anna," Tyler, who now had an 80 acre farm in Barry County, toned down his enthusiasms for the local women, but still tried to get his friend to come farm in Michigan by praising the land as well as the game (1852 August 1).

The other Michigan correspondents also urged their relations to join them, and discussed farming, hunting, and family news in great detail. During their early years in Michigan, enthusiasm for their adopted home flowed through every line, but this waned somewhat after 1857, when a barn burned, a child died, and crops failed. Samuel even spent some time in the Jackson jail in the 1870s.

Frank Blackmer's letters written while he worked as a sheep drover in 1880 are unfortunately brief, but his brother John's fairly regular letters over a twelve-year span provide an excellent portrait of a man permanently poised between home and the great unknown. For over a decade, he worked in Kansas and the Indian Territory, never making quite enough money, and never making up his mind whether to head further west, as he dearly wanted to, or to head home to New York, which was also a powerful draw. He wrote repeatedly that he had been "a blamed fool for staying around these parts for the last two years when I might have seen a good deal of country last spring I started out & went several counties west when I might have gone to California just as well..." (1886 November 7). Even as he complained about the hardships of his peripatetic, single life, and berated himself for not moving, he continued to linger in that part of the world.

The letters written back home by New Yorkers visiting western relations are as important as those written by the transplants themselves. In the mid-1880s, Bess Blackmer spent her school holidays visiting her Michigan relatives -- Pennells, Wilmarths, and Clarks -- in Grand Rapids and the surrounding area. By writing to her mother about her trip, she reacquainted her with people whose images had undoubtedly dimmed over the years. In 1891, Harriet took her own first trip west, stopping in Kansas, Illinois, and Michigan to spend time with family she had not seen in decades. She might have thought this first trip would also be her last, but her daughter Hattie was stricken with typhoid in Grand Rapids two years later, and her mother again traveled west, to nurse her and escort her home. These visits reaffirmed the bonds between long distance kin that otherwise might have withered, as letters full of local news grew less and less relevant to those far away.

One of the many fascinating single letters in this collection was written by Orren Short, from Michigan. In the 1850s, there was a fairly commonly held view that handwriting analysis was a means of diagnosing health complaints. After receiving -- and analyzing -- a letter from his sister Anna, Orren wrote to her husband Dudley Reed, and effectively requested that they stop having sex.

I also should judge by her writing that she is very poor. that there is difficulty by irregularity of the female organs. Great care should be taken to avoid overworking, or to great an excess of any indulgence that might irritate the female private organs. But few females ever recover wholly after becoming irregular in their monthly purgations, or by to great a flow, without abstaining wholly from sexual intercourse with their husbands for a length of time. Perhaps my views are not right in regard to Anna's case, if not please pardon me. If correct, please give it a trial (1856 September 7).

Reverting to his true calling, farmer Orren went on to discuss his wheat crop.

Other caches of correspondence include the letters Bess wrote home to her mother from Ohio-Wesleyan (1884-1886), detailing her classes, activities, and clothing needs; Lizzie Reed's sporadic letters to her brother Dudley, exhorting him to strop drinking and save his soul; and the 20th century material. This last portion of the collection consists of letters written to (the somehow related) Newton C. Rogers (A.E.F. Air Corps, France) from family members in New York and air corps friends in France. In patriotic and optimistic tones, these letters discuss news of friends and family "over here" and a bit of bravado and news of the fates of comrades from elsewhere "over there."

The Salomon family photograph album contains 55 photographs of friends, family members, and religious and political figures compiled by the family of Haitian President Lysius Salomon.

The Salomon family photograph album contains 55 photographs of friends, family members, and religious and political figures compiled by the family of Haitian President Lysius Salomon.

The album (30 x 22.5 cm) has embossed brown leather covers, gilt edges, and a metal clasp; it was produced and copyrighted by English firm T. J. Smith, Son, & Co. under the product name “Album Arbora.” A gilt-print index accompanied by a quote from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow on pg. 2 lists the locations of 13 decorative illustrations of various “Flowering Shrubs” found within the album.

Photographs mainly consist of carte de visite and cabinet card studio portrait photographs of various men, women, and children taken between the 1860s and 1880s. Also present is a souvenir from the funeral of a young Frenchman named Pierre Bertagne who passed away in 1925 at the age of 25 (between pgs. 2 & 3; includes a portrait of the deceased). Works of Haitian, French, English, German, Jamaican, Italian, Curaçaoan, Puerto Rican, and American photographers are represented. Black, white, and mixed subjects are included, and most individuals are unidentified. Eight portraits of President Salomon appear throughout the album; also present are photographic reproductions of illustrated portraits of Pope Pius IX (pg. 3), Italian statesman Giuseppe Garibaldi (pg. 7) and Prime Minister of Madagascar Rainilaiarivony (pg. 9) as well as a photographic portrait of Victor Emmanuel II, King of Italy (pg. 10). Numerous portraits of Catholic priests are also included.

Besides Lysius Salomon, other members of the Salomon family that may possibly be represented in the album include his second wife Florentine Salomon (pgs. 11, 15, and loose image between pgs. 40 & 41), daughter Ida Salomon Faubert (loose image between pgs. 40 & 41 and loose cabinet card between pgs. 42 & 43), and grandson Raoul Faubert (ca. 1920s real photo postcard, loose between pgs. 24 & 25).

Several photographs include inscriptions in French. Many of these inscriptions indicate that a photograph was given as a souvenir to either President Salomon himself or to Mrs. Salomon (presumably Florentine Salomon). For instance, on pg. 19 a portrait made in 1882 of a French priest of “Abbé de Aldrovandy” in Paris bears an inscription addressed to “Monsieur le General Salomon, President de la Republique D'Haiti,” indicating that the subject desired to have a fellow priest named Mathieu send this photograph to Salomon upon his death; a second inscription (presumably written by Mathieu) states the gentleman pictured has passed away and that his wish is being fulfilled by the portrait being sent to Salomon. Pg. 21 includes portraits of two women with inscriptions made out to “Mme La Presidant” and “Mde. Salomon” respectively, as well as a portrait of a young black man bearing an inscription in French that translates to: “Gratitude to our respectful and revered Father Le Duc de Saint Lous du Sud, President of the Republic of Haiti.” Also present on pg. 31 is a cabinet card portrait of the President of the Dominican Republic Fernando Arturo de Meriño with a verso inscription in Spanish that translates to: “To his Excellency General Salomon, President of the Republic of Haiti, his loyal friend Fernand A. de Merino Puerto Plata, February 5 1882.”

For conservation and preservation purposes, facsimile reproductions of each photograph have been put in place of the original photographs to replicate the arrangement of the album as it appeared when received. The original photographs are housed separately within the album container.

The Turner-Whiton papers contain correspondence, financial records, legal documents, essays, and newspaper clippings pertaining to T. Larkin Turner, a druggist from Boston, Massachusetts, and his wife, Elizabeth D. Whiton. The material primarily concerns the couple's courtship and two of Turner's pharmaceutical products.

This collection contains correspondence, financial records, legal documents, essays, and newspaper clippings pertaining to T. Larkin Turner, a druggist from Boston, Massachusetts, and his wife, Elizabeth D. Whiton. The material primarily concerns the couple's courtship and two of Turner's pharmaceutical products.

The first three subseries in the Correspondence series are grouped by correspondents: Elizabeth Whiton letters to T. Larkin Turner (122 items), Letters to Elizabeth Whiton (121 items), and T. Larkin Turner letters to Elizabeth Whiton (12 items). These subseries are comprised of personal letters written in the mid-19th century, primarily concerning the writers' social lives in Hingham, Charlestown, and Boston, Massachusetts. Elizabeth Whiton's correspondents included her siblings and female friends.

The Letters from H. subseries contains 43 letters that a man named Henry and his wife Marie wrote to his parents while traveling in Italy, France, England, and Germany in 1884 and 1885. Henry wrote the majority of the letters, commented on his life in Venice, Paris, and London, and mentioned a recent cholera epidemic. The subseries also includes a ticket and printed advertisement in French.

The Chronological Correspondence subseries comprises the bulk of the collection. The first 2 items are letters from Reverend Sherman Johnson of Southborough, Massachusetts, to a female acquaintance. Most items from 1833-1880 are personal letters to T. Larkin Turner and Elizabeth D. Whiton (later Elizabeth Turner), including their letters to one another during their courtship (ca. 1837-1843) and later letters from a branch of the Turner family in Lexington, Massachusetts. The courtship-era letters primarily concern Turner and Whiton's daily lives in Boston and Hingham, Massachusetts, respectively. Elizabeth Whiton also received letters from male and female friends in New England and New York, particularly in Charlestown and Boston, Massachusetts.

T. Larkin Turner received letters from several correspondents, including George R. Turner, who wrote a series of letters to Turner about his work for a Massachusetts railroad in 1847 and 1848. He commented on his in-state travels, his co-workers, and the railroad's progress. George W. Prescott of the United States Navy Yard in Pensacola, Florida, wrote personal letters to Turner from 1877-1883. Undated items include additional correspondence between Turner and Whiton and genealogical notes about the Turner family.

Advertisements include printed booklets, fliers, and other advertisements for T. Larkin Turner's medical cures, particularly the "Tic-Douloureux, or Universal Neuralgia Pill" and "Lorraine's Vegetable Cathartic Pills." Manuscript drafts of advertisements are also present. Other clippings are articles on medical conditions such as neuralgia, on Turner's pills, and on other medical topics.

A group of papers related to Turner's Nostrums contains manuscript drafted advertisements and notes about T. Larkin Turner's "Tic-Douloureux, or Universal Neuralgia Pill" and other products. Two lengthy manuscript drafts concern the neuralgia pill and a cure for menstrual discomfort. Notes concern various medical conditions and the importance of sleep, among other topics.

The Receipts and Documents series primarily contains receipts to Captain Larkin Turner and T. Larkin Turner, largely for everyday personal expenses. T. Larkin Turner also purchased a newspaper subscription and hired a horse and buggy on at least one occasion. Indentures and similar legal documents primarily pertain to land in Massachusetts.

The Muster Roll/Town Roster series contains two items: a booklet with names of Boston residents and other annotations, and a booklet containing copied information from a 1757 muster roll.

The Genealogy series has notes and fragments about the Whiton, Turner, and Whitney families, as well as poetry, essays, correspondence, and receipts of payment for copied documents.

T. Larkin Turner composed a 94-page Memorative of Larkin Turner, his father, on the backs of assorted documents, scraps, and ephemera items. The bound volume, the first in a series, covers Larkin's life until about 1812.

Additional Newspaper Clippings pertain to deaths, marriages, and the Fusilier Veteran Association.

The Miscellaneous series contains ephemera, sketches, a lock of Turner's hair, a Tufts library card for "Russell H. Whiting," and other items.

This collection contains correspondence, diaries, ephemera, photographs, and other material related to Vashti Detwiler Garwood, a schoolteacher and physician in Ohio, Massachusetts, Kansas, and Michigan. The collection documents her experiences teaching school in Ohio and Massachusetts, as well as her coursework at the Boston University School of Medicine. Also included are additional photographs of her family and a published history of the Novy-Garwood families.

This collection (0.5 linear feet) contains correspondence, diaries, ephemera, photographs, and other material related to Vashti Detwiler Garwood. The material documents her experiences teaching school in Ohio and Massachusetts, as well as her coursework at the Boston University School of Medicine. Also included are additional photographs of her family and a published history of the Novy and Garwood families.

The Correspondence series is comprised of 16 personal letters between members of the Cannon family of Pennsylvania and members of the Detwiler and Garwood families. The Cannon siblings wrote and received three letters between 1862 and 1864, sharing recent news such as local deaths. Isaiah Cannon also informed his brother, D. H. Cannon, of his intention to enlist in the Union Army (February 1, 1864).

The remaining 13 letters relate to Vashti Detwiler Garwood, including several from her mother-in-law, Angeline Garwood (1805-1881), who reported family news from Lewisburg, Ohio. Vashti received a letter from Spencer Willard Garwood, her future husband, written while he served in the 132nd Ohio Infantry Regiment during the Civil War; he provided some of his impressions of the South and shared updates about his regiment (July 7, 1864). In one late letter, W. H. Berkey, editor of the Vigilant, responded to her letter concerning conditions within the Cassopolis Jail in Cassopolis, Michigan; the Women's Christian Temperance Union believed Garwood's previously printed letter a fraud, though a clipping attached to the letter respects the Vigilant's verification of her identity (September 19, 1896).

Vashti Detwiler Garwood kept 5 Diaries and Journals between 1858 and 1868, most of which concern her experiences as a schoolteacher in Ohio and Massachusetts, as well as the early years of her married life in Fort Scott, Kansas. She wrote sporadically until the fall of 1864, when she began composing entries more frequently. Some of the journals document overlapping periods of time. Along with her experiences, she often recorded her thoughts and emotions, frequently related to her religious beliefs and her relationships. Her small pocket journal, kept throughout 1860, also contains quotations, algebra problems, and financial accounts. One late, undated entry in the journal, written between January 1, 1859, and December 31, 1864, is a lament composed after her failed attempt to win admission to Mount Holyoke Female Seminary. Her final journal, kept between January 2, 1865, and September 8, 1868, occasionally refers to military developments during the Civil War, and contains a brief allusion to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln (April 15, 1865). The series also holds a typescript of diary entries written between January 16, 1864, and September 27, 1864, made from a diary in the collection.

The Writings are 4 jokes and humorous anecdotes, including 1 referencing Native Americans; 6 poems, often sentimental in nature; a list of quotations and a set of notes; an 8-page lesson on "The Rainbow," composed in a question-and-answer format; and 2 essays on writing compositions, totaling around 3 and a half pages. One of the latter compositions is signed by Vashti Detwiler Garwood.

The first subseries of Documents and Ephemera holds items related to Vashti Detwiler Garwood's studies at the Boston University School of Medicine between 1880 and 1881, including tickets verifying her membership in the class and permission to attend lectures, an order of lectures for 1880-1881, 2 commencement tickets, and several items attesting to her successful completion of individual courses. Other material includes a printed circular addressed to students, which states the faculty's commitment to the fair treatment of women (February 5, 1882); tuition receipts; and an event program, printed in Latin. Other Documents and Ephemera are three manuscript slips attesting to Hiram Garwood's good conduct in school, funeral notices, invitations, and 3 printed, colorful cards presented to Martha and Vashti Detwiler as "reward[s] of merit."

The Recipes series (5 items) contains several recipes, including 2 individual items and a three-page sheet containing many recipes, a fragment from a food-related account, and a bill of fare.

Visual Material (22 items) includes photographic portraits and snapshots of members of the Detwiler and Garwood families, both identified and anonymous; a photograph of President James A. Garfield; a postcard depicting the University of Michigan's 1908 commencement exercises, with Vashti Detwiler Garwood marked; and a colored illustration of a woman. The collection also contains a cased ambrotype portrait of Christian Detwiler and Vashti, his daughter, taken in the fall of 1853, and a bound "Souvenir of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania" containing several views of the town.

Printed Material (22 items) consists of 16 newspaper clippings, most of which contain poetry or recipes; an educational pamphlet entitled The Family Bible Teacher, number 18 in a series; a newsletter from the Greenwich Academy, which mentions an upcoming visit by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow; 1 of Vashti Detwiler Garwood’s calling cards; and 2 small cards printed with memory- and friendship-themed mottos.

Also included is a copy of the Novy-Garwood Family Record and Connections, a book published in 1990.

Artifacts include a leather wallet purchased by Christian Detwiler in 1827, a circular wooden box, a paper doll, and several outfits for the doll.

The collection also holds 6 pages of Genealogy notes.

The papers of the Whittemore, Low, Peck, Parmelee, and Bonticou, families, primarily of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. The collection concerns the families' military service, genealogy, travel, and social activities.

The Correspondence series contains approximately 1.5 linear feet of letters, spanning 1776-1939, with the bulk concentrated around 1840-1939. It documents many branches of the family.

William Whittemore (b. 1761) of Boston, Massachusetts, wrote several of the earliest letters to his brother Amos in London, England, in the late 1790s. These letters primarily pertain to their business producing wool and cotton cards, and address such topics as business difficulties and market conditions in Massachusetts. Other items mention family matters and news, such as the death of their father, Thomas Whittemore (October 10, 1799). Also present are several letters concerning the Hubbard family of New Haven, Connecticut. In a letter to his parents, Thomas Hubbard shared his impressions of Georgetown, South Carolina, which he called a "wicked part" of the world (December 9, 1798). He described his living situation in a "bachelor hall," and referenced his wish to "make a fortune" in the South.

In the late 1830s, the focus of the correspondence series shifts to William Whittemore Low (1823-1877), the grandson of William Whittemore. The series, which includes both incoming and outgoing letters, documents many aspects of Low's career with the navy. In several early letters, his relatives strongly discouraged him from enlisting: His mother requested that he remain near her (August 9, 1839), and his grandfather wrote, "You will rue the day, should you enter either the Navy or Merchant Service," recommending instead that he become a shopkeeper or lawyer (December 1, 1839). Accompanying these are several recommendations from friends of Low's character and fitness for service. For the period of the 1840s and 1850s, many of the items are orders transferring Low between ships or addressing the logistics of his service. Included is a response to Low's request for detachment from the schooner Graham, signed by Jefferson Davis in his role as U.S. Secretary of War (June 8, 1853).

Of particular interest are the letters that Low wrote during his Civil War service as commander of the gunboat Octorara from September 1863 to the end of the war. They include a large number of long letters home, some giving excellent descriptions of Low's activities in the West Gulf Blockading Squadron. In a letter dated October 30, 1863, written to his brother Henry, Low anticipated his duties at Mobile but worried, "I am very much afraid that we shall break down before operations commence." In a letter to his father several days later, he gave a good description of the features of the Octorara and noted the repairs made on it (November 11, 1863).

A few letters during the Civil War period describe engagements and dangers faced onboard the Octorara. These include an account of an engagement on Mobile Bay on the morning of August 5, 1864, in which the Octorara fired on a Confederate ship "at anchor on the West side of the Bay in 2 fathoms water" (August 29, 1864). In an additional letter, Low described an incident in which he and his men mistook a ship for the CSS Nashville but quickly realized their error (September 14, 1864). Incoming letters to Low also shed light on the naval threat of the Confederacy. They include a copy of a letter by Edward La Croix, warning that a torpedo boat "propelled by a small engine" had just been built by Confederates at Selma, Alabama (November 20, 1864), and two letters by naval officer Edward Simpson, conveying intelligence concerning the blockade runner Heroine (March 23, 1865) and discussing the aftermath of the torpedoing of the USS Osage (March 29, 1865). In the latter, Simpson wrote, "I feel deeply for those poor fellows from the Osage and had already resolved on appropriating…one of the tin clads for hospital purposes." He also expressed hope that surgeons could transport the injured without inflicting further harm on them.

• A letter from James M. Dabney, in which he explained, "I am the owner of the Plantation nearest your present anchorage," and inquired whether he and his neighbors could return to their "homes & families, unmolested." (April 17, 1865)
• A letter from Ben Lane Posey, captain in the 38th Alabama Regiment, in which he admitted to being a Confederate States Army officer, but claimed, "I have had no connection with the army since Oct 6 1864." He also offered to surrender and requested to be returned to Mobile (April 20, 1864).
• A letter from J.B. Mendenhall of Buford's Landing, Alabama, which notes that a neighboring woman, "Mrs. Cleland," wishes to take an oath of allegiance to the United States. The letter also describes the response of slaves to the end of the war: "Her negroes have become defiant insulting, and she thinks dangerous….It is believed by some of the neighbours that their intention is to rob and plunder us perhaps murder before they leave. I know that mine are preparing to leave & wish they were gone." Mendenhall also expressed worry that his slaves would bring their friends and return to plunder his plantation (April 20, 1865).

A few letters also discuss the logistics of administering oaths of allegiance to southerners.

Also addressed in Low's Civil War correspondence are fairly routine matters, such as leaves of absences (July 2, 1864), complaints about the system of promotions (July 30, 1864), and a letter relating to the court martial of John Kennedy of the USS Oneida, who was found guilty of treating a superior officer with contempt (June 16, 1864). The series also includes official navy correspondence. Circular letters and orders address such topics as the use of alcohol onboard ships (September 16, 1862), appropriate actions in neutral waters (June 20, 1863), and the retrieval of supplies from Key West, Florida (September 11, 1863). Letters concerning Low's postwar career are much scarcer, but of particular interest is an 11-page description by Fred Patter of the capture of the pirate ship Forward (June 19, 1870).

From the 1870s on, the focus of the collection shifts to William W. Low's daughter, Grace Bonticou Low, and several other family members. Incoming letters to Grace Low begin in 1873, and her uncle, Henry Whittemore Low, and mother, Evelina P. Low, wrote much of the earliest correspondence of this period. Grace’s outgoing correspondence began in 1880 with letters to her family in New Haven about her time in Washington, D.C., where she attended a co-educational school and participated in ice skating, a tour and reception at the White House (Jan. 4, 1881), a reception of the First Lady Lucy Webb Hayes (Jan. 15, 1881), and visits to the Smithsonian Institution. Among her female acquaintances was Frances ("Fanny") Hayes, the daughter of President and Mrs. Hayes. In the mid-1880s, Low attended school in Watervliet, New York, and wrote of her social life and classes there. Her outgoing correspondence ends in 1891. Approximately 100 letters to Grace Low from her brother, Theodore H. Low, date from the mid-1890s to 1939. These regard his time at various naval hospitals in South Carolina, Rhode Island, and Washington D.C. Grace also received around 20 letters from another brother, William Low (1912-1916). Also of interest are letters written to Henry Low, mostly by his nephews, William and Theodore Low. Their correspondence with him includes accounts of their service with the Marines during the Boxer rebellion, Philippine insurrection, and the invasion of several Caribbean countries in 1907-1908. Theodore's later letters provide details of his work as an inventor, including applying for and receiving a patent for a bottle opener.

Several additional sets of letters provide insights into various female members of the Whittemore, Low, and Parmelee families. Geraldine Whittemore Low wrote a handful of letters to her uncle, Henry W. Low, from New Haven about her recreational activities and social gatherings with friends during the 1880s. They concern Valentine’s Day, her whist club, weddings, balls, and other social events. A set of 30 letters from Julie Parmelee Marston and Mary Parmelee Low, the widow of William Whittemore Low, Jr., to their cousin, Mary E. Redfield in New Haven, relate to their trip to Switzerland between September 1923 and August, 1926. They traveled on the American Line, SS Mongolia, and after their arrival, explored Switzerland, France, and Italy. Both Mary and Julie described their surroundings, cultural events they attended, and the people that they met in Europe. Mary also wrote about her two children, Charlotte and Billy; the expenses of the trip; and several aspects of the children’s education while in Switzerland.

The Letter Books series contains four letter books by William Whittemore Low, Sr., between 1840 and 1875, and two kept by Elisha Peck, 1843-1863. The earliest William W. Low letter book spans July 25, 1840-March 19, 1867 and contains 415 letters in its 466 pages. It comprises copies and originals of both incoming and outgoing letters that document much of Low's naval career. Early letters shed light on Low's time onboard the Missouri and the Saratoga and his education at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Many pertain to transfers, ship inventories, orders, and the enlistment of crews. Of particular interest are letters from the period of Low's service with the Union Navy during the Civil War onboard the St. Louis, Constellation, andOctorara. Both official and personal in nature, they shed light on naval policies, personnel, and Low's wartime experiences.

• A navy circular signed by Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles concerning the blockade and capture of Confederate vessels (August 18, 1862)
• A printed note containing intelligence that "the Oreto Gunboat is intended for the Southern Confederacy" (February 27, 1862)
• Low's orders to proceed to New Orleans and join the Octorara (September 22, 1863)
• A substantial amount of correspondence related to the Battle of Mobile Bay in early August 1864
• Numerous manuscript orders by Admiral Henry K. Thatcher tipped into the volume. They include one from March 31, 1865: "Open fire on the fort. Aim well to the left."

A significant part of the postwar correspondence relates to a bureaucratic error which resulted in the delay of a promotion for Low from the Board of Admirals. An index appears at the end of the volume.

The second William W. Low, Sr., letter book spans 1865-1875, and contains 212 pages of copied incoming and outgoing letters as well as copied passages from books concerning military science and ordnance, and copies of general orders. The materials pertain to the transportation of supplies, Low's knowledge of ordnance, a proposed article concerning Low for the Army & Navy Journal, Low's recommendations for various navy colleagues, and other subjects.

The third William W. Low, Sr., letter book spans 1870-1871, and consists of 335 letters within 263 pages. It comprises writer-retained copies of outgoing letters to correspondents in the U.S. Navy. Low wrote the letters while onboard the steam sloop-of-war USS Mohican. His primary correspondents were Rear Admiral John A. Winslow, S.W. Gordon, Rear Admiral Thomas Turner, Commodore William Rogers Taylor, and George M. Robeson. Topics of the correspondence include health and sanitation, supplies, the condition of the ship, the ventilation of the berth deck, and navy financial matters. Low also included in his letters summaries of courts martial for theft, intoxication, and the escape of prisoners, as well as information on casualties, training, and transfers. A series of significant letters in June 1870 record a conflict between San Salvador and Mexico, as well as the capture of the pirate ship Forward.

Also included is a volume of compiled circular letters from the U.S. Navy Department, 1870-1875. Likely kept by William W. Low, Sr., the item contains printed and manuscript letters concerning such topics as courts martial, recordkeeping, uniform regulations, and rank. The book also includes an index of topics in the front.

The first Elisha Peck letter book covers 1843-1863 and contains 30 letters by Peck, most of which he wrote to his wife Grace and children, Evelina ("Eva"), Henry, and Joanna ("Anna"). Peck wrote 11 of the letters while onboard the U.S. sloop of war Portsmouth from 1849-1851; during this time, Peck commanded the ship as part of an effort to stop the illicit slave trade from West Africa. In his letters home, he described terrain that he saw from the ship, expressed his sorrow over being separated from his family, and gave accounts of his experiences. On January 1, 1850, he wrote a letter from Cape Verde, noting that most American and British ships of war took "on board 20 or 30 African Negroes" to row in the "extreme heat of the African sun." He also gave details on the evasive movements of slave traders. In other letters, Low discussed Ghezo, the King of Dahomey and the kingdom's corps of female soldiers (April 20, 1850); the transportation of beeswax and ivory to the coast of present-day Angola (September 1, 1850); and drinking 100-year old wine on Christmas Day (January 2, 1851). Peck wrote most of the remainder of the letters while onboard the Carolina off the Brooklyn Navy Yard, discussing naval happenings and social visits and expressing affection for his children.

The second Elisha Peck letter book contains writer-retained copies of official naval correspondence written by Peck to various correspondents. The volume spans June 12, 1849-September 1, 1851, and covers the period of Peck's service with the Portsmouth. Letters concern personnel matters, the compiling of returns, disciplinary matters, and other topics. Major recipients include Francis Gregory, William B. Preston, William Craig, and William A. Graham.

Note: Two additional letter books by Thomas J. Whittemore are located in the Genealogy series because they contain correspondence related only to family research.

The Reminiscences, Essays, and Miscellaneous Writings series contains various materials written by members of the Whittemore-Low family, including poems; accounts of the military service of William W. Low, Sr., and Theodore Low; short fiction; religious writings; and fragments. Much of the writing is undated and unsigned, but several pieces concerning military duties in China and at the U.S. Naval Academy are attributed to Theodore Low.

The Diaries, Commonplace Books, and Logbook series contains 12 volumes kept by various family members between 1820 and 1886. The series consists of two volumes by Grace Bonticou Peck (1820 and 1827), two by William W. Low, Sr. (1844-1845 and [1848-1849]), one by Evelina Peck (1852-1853), one by Henry S. Parmelee (1865), one by Grace B. Low (1886), and five unattributed volumes.

Grace B. Peck's two volumes contain poems and quotations selected for or dedicated to her by various friends. The entries address subjects such as religion, hope, death, friendship, love, solitude, and the qualities of women. Most of the entries are signed, although few are dated or indicate location. The books kept by William W. Low, Sr., include an early commonplace book and a logbook for the USS Mohican. The latter volume comprises daily entries recording weather, barometer readings, sails set, the use of steam power, and the ship's longitude and latitude. The entries also contain records of minor transgressions, desertions, courts martial, and punishments. Detailed descriptions of the geography of Mazatlan, Altata, Pichilingue Bay, and San Blas, Mexico, are present on pages 35-41. The logbook also records the arrivals and departures of foreign ships and shore parties, the receipt of food and supplies, and the transfer of sailors between ships and to hospitals. Of particular interest is the description of the Mohican's engagement with the pirate ship Forward on June 16-19, 1870 (pages 58-61). The Evelina Peck volume is an album of messages from various friends and acquaintances, including quotations and several original poems. Most of the entries are reminiscences about friendship or expressions of sorrow over an imminent departure. The majority of entries are signed and dated; many mark "New Haven" as their location. The last entry is an ink drawing of a harp and pipe with no date or signature. The entries are in no particular order. Henry S. Parmelee's diary records very brief entries for eight days of Civil War service with the 1st Connecticut Cavalry Regiment in March and April 1865. Grace Bonticou Low’s diary dates from January to June 1886, and describes her life as a 21-year old woman staying with her aunt Anna and uncle James in Washington, D.C. Her entries reflect almost entirely on social events, dances, masquerades, visits, theater performances, and church attendance. She often wrote of particular female friends and of the military men she encountered in Washington.

The Documents and Receipts series contains several subseries based on the original bundles in which the family papers arrived. The subseries are as follows: Elisha Peck Bundle, which spans 1831-1875; Bonticou Bundle (1778-1837); Low Bundle (1895; undated); Washington, D.C. Property Bundle (1880-1883); Property and Pension Bundle (1880-1909); Theodore Low Naval Bundle (1906-1907); Other Documents and Receipts (1729-19[02?]). The bundles contain a wide variety of document types, including military and legal documents, wills, land indentures, pension papers, receipts, and petitions. These shed light on the careers, finances, and transactions of many members of the Whittemore-Low family.

The Graphics series contains 10 photograph albums, 2 scrapbooks, and approximately 100 cased and paper photographs, totaling approximately 1000 photographs of various kinds. The albums and scrapbooks date from the late-19th and early-20th centuries.

• Asian Travel photograph album, 1875-1877: The album contains albumen print views and portraits from Aden; Nagasaki, Kyoto and Hakodate, Japan; and Singapore. In addition to images of ports and group portraits of Japanese women, the album has several early photographs of the Ainu that offer an impression of their mode of dress and style of living. The series of photographs taken in Singapore show native theatre and homes, as well as a Hindu temple and a European style church under construction (in the background of one image). The album also includes a portrait of the King of Siam (Chulalongkorn or Rama V).
• Friendship album, 1879-1883: The album contains signatures, quotations, and eight chromolithographs of floral images. The creator of the album is unknown.
• Parmelee family album, ca. 1890: The album contains 137 silver gelatin photoprints showing the Parmelee family yachting, relaxing on the beach, and socializing at home.
• Henry S. Parmelee family Newport and Yale photograph album, 1901: The album contains gelatin silver prints of the Parmelee family and friends in a series of outdoor activities throughout southern New England. A series of photographs taken in the harbor of Newport, Rhode Island, features the yacht Speranza with women, children, and a dog among its passengers, as well as a number of candid portraits of a swimming party in Newport. Photographs taken in New Haven show an outing to the New Haven Country Club, as well as an image of decorations for the Yale Bicentennial. Also present are some faint but interesting images of tobogganing.
• Parmelee family Schooner Alert and Nassau photograph album, 1902: This album, which contains 92 gelatin silver prints, documents the Parmelee family vacationing and yachting in the Bahamas. The images are a combination of professional souvenir and amateur candid photographs. Many photographs show Nassau's Colonial Hotel: its exterior, interiors, tennis courts, and swimming pool. Other images from Nassau show natives near their homes, at market, and diving. Several photographs feature varied foliage, such as palms, banana plants, ciba trees, and cacti. Nearly half of the album focuses on Henry S. Parmelee's Schooner Alert, including numerous group photographs of the men and women on board, as well as several images of people reading and resting on deck.
• Julie F. Parmelee obituary scrapbook, 1902: The scrapbook contains newspaper clippings and articles on the death of Henry S. Parmelee and his wife, Mary F. Parmelee. Also included is a clipping on the death of William Whittemore, Jr., and an article on the reception hosted by the Parmelee family. The compiler of the scrapbook is Julie F. Parmelee, daughter of Henry and Mary Parmelee.
• William W. Low, Jr., Puerto Rico and Hawaii photograph album, ca. 1901-1902: The album contains photographs of Hawaii and of Puerto Rico after the Spanish-American War. Images depict navy officers as well as navy vessels, including the Arethusa. Several photographs document bridge-building and the Puerto Rican countryside. Also included are a fine early view of Honolulu, an image of a polo game, and portraits of an Asian child and an Asian woman.
• William W. Low, Jr., Puerto Rico photograph album, ca. 1902: The album contains 28 silver developing-out prints of Puerto Rico after the Spanish-American War. Several images show men in military uniform (mostly American army and navy, but also some Spanish or local militia). Additional images feature groups of American men and women and local women and children, along with several views of architecture.
• [William W. Low, Jr.] Travel photograph album, 1897-1909: The album contains 121 silver gelatin photoprints of Connecticut, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. It includes a series of images of navy officers and vessels such as the New York and Columbia, as well as numerous images of family and friends aboard a sailboat. Also present are a handful of photographs of East Rock Park in New Haven, Connecticut, in the winter.
• [William W. Low, Jr.] Puerto Rico, U.S., and Hawaii photograph album, 1911: The album contains 268 silver gelatin photoprints of locations in Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Connecticut, and South Carolina. Images of Puerto Rico include various buildings, dwellings, harbors, a naval station, and views of the countryside. In addition are images of street scenes with Puerto Ricans, many of them children. Several photographs of the Lows on vacation in Charleston, South Carolina, are also present, as are several images of the Low home in Connecticut.
• Charlotte Low Baby photograph album, 1910-1922: The album contains 94 albumen prints and silver gelatin photoprints of Charlotte Low as an infant and young child. It includes numerous portraits of Charlotte posed with toys, other children, and family members.
• Charlotte Low photograph album, 1921-1922: The album contains 110 silver gelatin photoprints of Charlotte Low and friends at home in New Haven, Connecticut, and at Camp Broadview for girls. It includes amateur portraits as well as photographs depicting girls engaged in swimming, canoeing, and hiking. Also present are several photographs of family pets and of Charlotte Low riding a bicycle.

The individual photographs date from the 1840s to the 1890s and depict members of the Low, Whittemore, and Parmelee families, in groups and individually. Subjects of portraits include Theodore Low, Geraldine Low, Henry Wentworth Low, Evelina (Peck) Low, William W. Low, Sr., Mary Frances Parmelee, Eliza Parmelee, Lewis C. Parmelee, Henry Parmelee, Elizabeth Parmelee, Fanny Whittemore, Anna Whittemore, and James M. Whittemore. A wide array of formats, such as daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, crystoleums, and cabinet cards, are present.

The Ephemera and Realia series contains a variety of items, including invitations, calling cards, fliers, locks of hair from various family members, cloth, and the artificial orange blossoms used to decorate Evelina Peck Low's wedding dress. The items mainly date to the mid- to-late-19th century.

The Genealogical Materials series contains approximately two linear feet of materials related to the history of the Whittemore-Low family. Items pertain to various lines of the family, including the Whittemores, Lows, Pecks, Bonticous, and Parmelees. Included are newspaper clippings, pamphlets, manuscript records of birth and death dates for various family members, and miscellaneous material giving biographical information. Also present are two letterbooks kept by Thomas J. Whittemore on genealogical matters and inquiries.

The Miscellaneous series contains a few scattered notes and envelopes from the late-19th and early 20th-centuries.